<BACK
“A Room with a View” continued
fewer
complications, required less narcotic pain medication, needed
less nursing care and, not surprisingly, were discharged
earlier than the first group.
What
was the one thing that the second group of patients received
that the first group did not?
- A
new generation drug?
- A
costly high-tech procedure?
- A
dangerous experimental therapy?
The
answer will surprise you. And it may come as a shock, that
although this research was done almost two decades ago, the
majority of patients, as well as their doctors, do not know
the first thing about it.
What
was the difference in the two groups? Something so simple,
so inexpensive and so unexpected that many people laughed
when they heard about it. The difference was...a room with
a view!
Patients
in the second group had a view from their window. Not of
a gorgeous landscape or rolling ocean waves but a view of...a
tree!
The
implications of this research are profound, but only a handful
of hospitals are designed with the natural environment in
mind. And few doctors advise their patients that exposure
to a natural environment could speed their recovery from
surgery. Perhaps it's because this research was done, not
by doctors, but by a landscape architect!
Of
course, much more research has been done in the nearly twenty
years since the "room with a view" study was published. We
now know that even pictures of nature are extremely effective
in reducing stress, not only for hospitalized patients,
but for anyone who sees them.
|
Today,
many people live in urban environments and do not have the
luxury of getting away to a natural area very often. Others
are just too caught up in the demands of modern living to
take time away, except perhaps for the all too brief week's
vacation at the shore or in the mountains.
For
those who are ill or are incapacitated by injury, getting "back
to nature" can be impossible. Fortunately, you can
now visit beautiful healing natural scenes any time you desire
without ever leaving the comfort of your home! Just put in
a tape, grab your remote and make yourself comfortable.
Who
said that watching television was bad for your health?!
Selected
Scientific References:
Ulrich,
Roger S. View Through a Window May Influence Recovery From
Surgery. Science Magazine. American Association for the Advancement
of Science, April 1984.
Herzog,
T. R., and P. J. Bosley. 1992. "Tranquility and Preference
as Affective Qualities of Natural Environments." Journal
of Environmental Psychology 12:115-127.
Ulrich,
R. S., R. F. Simons, B. D. Losito, E. Fiorito, M. A. Miles
and M. Zelson. 1991. "Stress Recovery During Exposure to
Natural and Urban Environments." Journal of Environmental
Psychology 11:201-230.
|
